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Here are the tastingspoons players. I’m in the middle (Carolyn). Daughter Sara on the right, and daughter-in-law Karen on the left. I started the blog in 2007, as a way to share recipes with my family. I’m still doing 99% of the blogging and holding out hope that these two lovely and excellent cooks will participate. They both lead very busy lives, so we’ll see.

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BOOK READING (from Carolyn):

Music of Bees, Eileen Garvin. Absolutely charming book about a woman in midlife, lonely, who raises bees, also makes unlikely friends. Heart-warming and very interesting about beekeeping.

A Postcard from Paris, Alex Brown. Really cute story. Dual time line, 1940s and present day about renovating an old apartment in Paris, things discovered.

Time of the Child, Niall Williams. Oh such a good book. Very small village in Ireland, 1960s. A baby is left on the doorstep. The town all whispers and helps. I listened to an interview of the author, which made me like him and his books even more.

Sipsworth, Simon Van Booy. If you like animals you’ll swoon. An old woman who really wants to die finds a tiny mouse in her house and befriends it and finds a reason to live. Utterly charming book.

The Forger’s Spell, Edward Dolnick. True story. For seven years a no-account painter named Han van Meegeren managed to pass off his paintings as those of Johannes Vermeer.

If You Lived Here, You’d be Home by Now, Christopher Ingraham. Could hardly put it down – about a journalist who takes on a challenge to move to small town in Minnesota and write about it. He expects to hate it and the people and place, but he doesn’t. Absolutely wonderful true story.

The River We Remember, William Kent Kreuger. 1950s, Minnesota. A murder and the aftermath. Could hardly put it down. Kreuger has such a vivid imagination and writing style.

How the Lights Gets In, Joyce Maynard. An older woman returns to New Hampshire to help care for her brain-injured son. Siblings and family, lots of angst and resentments.

The Filling Station, Vanessa Miller. Every American should read this book. A novelized retelling of the Tulsa massacre in 1921. Absolutely riveting.

The Story She Left Behind, Patti Callahan Henry. Love this author. Based on a true story. A famous author simply vanishes, leaving her husband and daughter behind. She had invented a mystical language no one could translate. Present day, someone thinks he’s solved the riddle, contacts the family. Really interesting read.

The Girl from Berlin, Ronald Balson. Love anything about Tuscany. An elderly woman is being evicted from a villa there, with odd deed provenance. Two young folks go there to help unravel the mystery. Loved it.

The Island of the Colorblind, Oliver Sacks, M.D. Nonfiction. The dr is intrigued by a remote Pacific island where most of the inhabitants are colorblind. He also unravels a mystery on Guam of people born with a strange neurological problem. Medical mysteries unveiled. Very interesting.

The Bookbinder, Pip Williams. Post 1914 London. Two sisters work at a bookbindery. They’re told to not read the books. One does and one doesn’t. One has visions beyond her narrow world; the other does not. Eventually the one gets into Oxford. Lovely story.

The Paris Express, Emma Donoghue. 1895 on a train to Paris, a disaster happens. You’ll delve into the lives of many people who survived and died in the crash.

A Race to the Bottom of Crazy, Richard Grant. This is about Arizona. Author, wife and child move back to Arizona where they once lived. Part memoir, research, and reporting in a quest to understand what makes Arizona such a confounding and irresistible place.

The Scarlet Thread, Francine Rivers. A woman’s life turned upside down when she discovers the handcrafted quilt and journal of her ancestor Mary Kathryn McMurray, a young woman who was uprooted from her home only to endure harsh frontier conditions on the Oregon Trail.

A Place to Hide, Ronald Balson. 1939 Amsterdam, an ambassador has the ability to save the lives of many Jewish children. Heartwarming.

Homeseeking, Karissa Chen. Two young Chinese teens are deeply in love, but in China. Then their families are separated. Jump to current day and the two meet again in Los Angeles.

North River, Pete Hammill. He always writes such a good story. A doctor works diligently healing people from all walks of life. His wife and daughter left him years before. One day his 3-yr old grandson arrives on his doorstep.

A Very Typical Family, Sierra Godfrey. A very messed-up family. Three adult children are given a home in Santa Cruz, Calif, but only if the siblings meet up and live in the house together. A very untypical scenario but makes for lots of messes.

Three Days in June, Anne Tyler. The usual Anne Tyler grit. Family angst. This wasn’t one of my favorites, but it was entertaining and very short.

Saved, Benjamin Hall. Author is a veteran war reporter. Ukraine, 2022, he nearly loses his life to a Russian strike. Riveting story – he survives, barely.

Grey Wolf, Louise Penny. Another Inspector Gamache mystery in Quebec. She is such an incredible mystery writer.

All the Colors of the Dark, Chris Whitaker. A missing person mystery, a serial killer thriller, a love story, a unique twist on each. Could hardly put it down.

Orbital, Samantha Harvey. Winner of 2024 Booker Prize. I don’t usually like those, but I heard the author interviewed and she hooked me. This is not a normal book with a beginning, a story and an end. It’s several chapters of the day in the life of various astronauts at the ISS (Int’l Space Station). All fictional. She’s been praised by several real astronauts for “getting it” about space station everyday life.

The Blue Hour, Paula Hawkins. An island off Scotland. Inaccessible except when the tide is out. Weird goings on. An artist. A present day mystery too.

Iron Lake, William Kent Krueger. A judge is murdered and a boy is missing. Riveting mystery.

Tell the Wolves I’m Home, Carol Ricks Brunt. 1980s. A 14-yr old girl loses her beloved uncle. Yet a new friendship arises, someone she never knew about.

Four Treasures of the Sky, Jenny Zhang. 1880s, a young girl is kidnapped in China and brought to the United States. She survives with many hurdles in the path.

The Boy Who Fell out of the Sky, Ken Dornstein. Memoir, 1988. The author’s brother died in the PanAm flight that went down in Lockerbie, Scotland. A decade later he tries to solve “the riddle of his older brother’s life.”

Worse Care Scenario, T.J. Newman. Oh my. Interesting analysis of what could/might happen if a jet crashed into a nuclear plant. Un-put-downable.

Song of the Lark, Willa Cather. Complicated weave of a story about a young woman in about 1900, who has a gifted voice (singing) and about her journey to success, not without its ups and downs.

Crow Talk, Eileen Garvin. Charming story which takes place at a remote lake in Washington State, about a few people who inhabit it, the friendships made, but also revolving around the rescue of a baby crow.

The Story Collector, Evie Woods. Sweet story about some dark secrets from an area in Ireland, a bit magical, faerie life, but solving a mystery too.

A Sea of Unspoken Things, Adrienne Young. A woman investigates her twin brother’s mysterious death. She goes to a small town in California to figure it out, to figure HIM out.

The King’s Messenger, Susanna Kearsley. 1600s England, King James. About one of his trusted “messengers,” and his relationship with a young woman also of “the court.” Lots of intrigue.

In the Shadow of the Greenbrier, Emily Matchar. Interesting mystery in/around the area of the famous resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.

Isola, Allegra Goodman. Hard to describe, survival story on an island in the 1600s.

Save the Date, Allison Raskin. Rom-com, witty, LOL funny. Clever.

The Sirens, Emilia Hart. Numerous time-lines, Australia. Mysteries abound, nightmares, abandoned baby, weird allergies.

Red Clay, Charles Fancher. LOVED this book. Mostly post-Civil War story about the lives of slaves in Alabama during Reconstruction.

Stars in an Italian Sky, Jill Santopolo. Dual time line, 1946 and recent time. Love stories and a mystery.

Battle Mountain, C.J. Box. Another one of Box’s riveting mysteries. Love his descriptions of the land.

Something Beautiful Happened, Yvette Corporon. A memoir of sorts in Greece, tiny island of Erikousa, where the locals hid Jews during WWII. All elusive stories told by the author’s grandmother.

The Jackal’s Mistress, Chris Bohjalian. 1860s Virginia, about a woman who saves the life of a Union soldier. Really good story.

Song of the Magpie, Louise Mayberry. Really interesting story about Australia back in the days when it was mostly a penal colony. Gritty strength of a woman trying to thrive with her farm.

The Boomerang, Robert Bailey. A thriller that will have you gripping the book. About a lot of secrets surrounding the president (fictional novel, remember) and his chief of staff and about cancer. A cure. Such a good story.

Care and Feeding, Laurie Woolever. Really interesting memoir of a woman driven to succeed in the restaurant business. She worked for Mario Batali and then Anthony Bourdain. Gritty stories.

Everything is Tuberculosis, John Green. Maybe not a book for everyone. A real deep dive into the deadly tuberculosis infection, its history. I heard the author interviewed and found the book very interesting.

The Book Lovers Library, Madeline Martin. Fascinating read about Boots’ drug stores’ lending library. And the people who worked in them.

The Arrivals, Meg Mitchell Moore. LOL funny, about a middle-aged couple whose children (and their various family members) return to the family home and the chaos that ensues.

My Life as a Silent Movie, Jesse Lee Kercheval. About grief. A big move to Paris, finding herself a new life with a new set of real blood family.

Escape, Carolyn Jessop. Another memoir about a woman really in bondage in Utah, Mormon plural marriage.

 

Tasting Spoons

My blog's namesake - small, old and some very dented engraved silver plated tea spoons that belonged to my mother-in-law, and I use them to taste my food as I'm cooking.

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Posted in Beef, on September 9th, 2016.

meatloaf_ital_sausage_parmigiano

What makes meatloaf Italian? The addition of Italian sausage, Italian seasonings AND some grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, of course! Was it good? Yes, indeed!

Family was visiting – the part of my family that’s likes the basics – a good hunk of meat, carbs, veggies and maybe a salad. The first night of their visit we had grilled pork chops with a cold orzo salad. Nothing fancy. The next night I decided to make meatloaf – I hadn’t made it in ages. As a widow/single person, making a meatloaf sounds like 5 dinners in a row and I’d be bored with it after about two. I could have used my old-favorite recipe, Meatloaf with Sweet and Sour Sauce, which has been a family favorite for decades. But I thought I’d change it up a bit. Not knowing what to do exactly, I went on the ‘net and searched for how all the Food Network chefs make their meatloaf and I picked and chose amongst the variations and made up my own. I suppose it could be said that as long as the basics are there, it’s hard to screw up a meatloaf, no matter what you put in it.

meatloaf_raw_readytobake

This one . . . first I minced up carrot, celery and onion and sautéed it in a little oil until the veggies were completely wilted. Meanwhile, into a big bowl I added lots of lean ground beef, some Italian sausage (actually what I had was turkey Italian sausage that I squeezed out of its casing), a heaping handful of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, seasonings (including a hearty bunch of Slap Yo Mama Cajun seasonings), bread that I soaked in milk and squished up with my hands so there were virtually no visible pieces left, 3 eggs and the cooled veggies. I mushed that up, as you do have to do with meatloaf and I literally poured it into a big oval baking dish. I shaped it a bit and topped it with loads of Heinz ketchup (my favorite brand, when I do use ketchup, which isn’t all that often) and baked it for 1 1/2 hours until the internal temperature reached about 158°F. Websites say to remove meatloaf between 155-160°F.

Usually mashed potatoes are my carb of choice for meatloaf, but I made lime cilantro rice instead (recipe coming up soon) which actually was a very nice side dish for it. It was a hit.

What’s GOOD: I really, really liked this mixture. The addition of Italian sausage added a different flavor component – I could taste it – it was probably the fennel that was what I tasted that made me think of Italian sausage since I’d used turkey Italian sausage. But I also added the grated Parmigiano too, and oodles of Italian seasonings. The bread/milk mixture lightened the meatloaf – it was amazingly tender when sliced, and although you really couldn’t taste the carrots and celery and onion, you could barely see them peppered throughout the meatloaf. An altogether great recipe. I’ll make it again for sure.

What’s NOT: hmmm. I can’t think of anything I didn’t like about this. My family enjoyed it – no complaints from them.

printer-friendly PDF and MasterCook 15/16 file (click link to open recipe)

* Exported from MasterCook *

Meatloaf with Italian Sausage

Recipe By: My own combination, 2016
Serving Size: 10-12

2 pounds lean ground beef
1 pound Italian sausage — removed from casing (pork or turkey)
3 large eggs
2/3 cup onion — diced
2 small carrots — finely diced
1 cup celery — finely diced, including leaves
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried basil
1/2 teaspoon Slap Yo Mama seasoning — or other spicy Cajun-style dry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 slices white bread
1/2 cup milk — (may need slightly more)
1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese — grated
2/3 cup ketchup — for topping

1. In a small bowl break up the white bread with milk and let sit about 5-10 minutes. Using your fingers, break up the mushy bread so there are almost no visible pieces.
2. In a medium saute pan heat the canola oil and add the vegetables (onions, carrots and celery). Cook them until they are completely limp. Set aside to cool.
3. In a very large bowl combine the meat, eggs, thyme, basil, Slap Yo Mama seasoning, pepper and Parmigiano cheese. When vegetables have cooled sufficiently, pour into the bowl along with the bread/milk mixture. Gently massage the meat until there are no streaks of egg or any chunks of bread and more-or-less the mixture is homogenous. The less you “work” the meat, the more tender it will be.
4. Preheat oven to 350°. Use a large, rimmed baking dish and carefully pour the meatloaf mixture into the dish, using your hands to mush it into a very long and wide oval. Press ends in so they are not pointed, if possible. Pour ketchup over the top of the meatloaf and spread out to the edges without it dripping down the sides (it will burn there). Bake for about 90 minutes, or until the meat reaches 155-160°F on an instant read thermometer. Remove from oven and allow to sit for 10-15 minutes, tented with foil. Using a baster, remove the grease from the pan and carefully, using 2 large spatulas, remove the meatloaf to a serving dish larger than the meatloaf. Or, slice the meatloaf in the baking dish. Once meatloaf is cool it will be easier to remove and store leftovers. Makes wonderful sandwiches.
Per Serving: 418 Calories; 32g Fat (69.0% calories from fat); 22g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 140mg Cholesterol; 557mg Sodium.

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